Automobile frame and pressed-steel constructional elements therefor



Nov. 113 11923.

R. 5. SMITH AUTOMOBILE FRAME AND I RESSED STEEL CONSTRUCTIONAL ELEMENTS THEREFOR Filed Sept. 12, 1921 I .52 he" 9/4 Avrro/z/vzm Patented Nov, l3,

I.HTED ,ST

anai BEUBEN STAITLEY SMITHQ'OF MILWAUKEE, WISCONSI1\T, ASSIGNOR TO A. O. SMITH CORPORATION, O EMI-LWAUKEE, WISCONSIN, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

a'o'ro rnosrnn FRAME- .enn rnnssnn-srnnr. CONSTRUCTIONAL nnnmnnrs THEREFOR.

Application filed September 12, 1921. Serial No. 500,01 8

T aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that' I, REUBEN STANLEX Srrrrn, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of Milwaukee, county t of Milwaukee, and State of Wisconsin, have invented certain new and useful improvements inAutomobile Frames and Pressed- Steel constructional Elements Therefor; and I do declare the following to be stolen, 10 exact, and complete description thereof,- such as will enable others skilled in the art to which the invention pertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the ac-. companying drawing for an illustration 'of one form in which my invention has been embodied.

, The invention relates to an automobile Lf rarne or chassis, and to the, members of j 1",which it is composed. Pressed steel automobile frames having the several elements thereof united into a permanent and unitary structure are now in general use. The side bars, cross bars, and other elements constituting the frame, are

gage which is uniform throughout eachstrip The plates or blanks of curved or other outline from which the bars are drawn, are formed as channels in a manner which is well known to those skilledin the 1 art. The channelsof these parts vary in width, and are usually narrower at their ends, as, for instance, in the case of the side bars. The vertical web of the channel is perforated in its narrower portions, for theattachment of adjunctive devices, and such perforations act to Weaken the bar v in the vertical plane of the perforations.

the practice to reinforce the channels at their weakest points, 'orat points where My present invention enables me to re-.

inforce the channeled side orcross bar, without resorting to the older practice of separate reinforcement. I achieve the result by producing'an integral reinforcement of the usually made from strips ofsheet steel of a .To avoid liability to fracture, it has been expansion of the sides of the blank to increase the thickness in the desired degree, and as-permitted by the clearance provided in the compressing dies;

In Patent No. 1,452,225, which was granted April 17, 1923, 'on an application led by me on -March 31, 1920, Serial No. 370,136,1have disclosed a method of pro- 'ducing a curved plate, blank, and ultimately a curvedyfianged bar, which is thicknened throughout certain areas, for the purpose of integral reinforcement, in accordance with the present invention. In carrying out the method disclosed in the said patent, I bend awide rectangular nlate so as to distort the lateral area-thereof, sufiiciently to enable a curved blank having an extreme width in excess of that of .the rectangular blank, to be punched therefrom. It is expedient,

vin producing curved plates or blanks, to

utilize the bending pressure as a 'means for effecting the compression of the blank in the desired sections. 7 The novel features of the present invention will be pointed out in the appended claims. 1 In theaccompanying drawing,

F igure 1 is an isometric perspective of anautomobile frame, embodying the novel. features of my invention.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged view in elevation of one end of a channeled sidebar constructed in accordance with the present invention.

- Fig. 5 is a perspectiveview of one end of a curved metal blank, showing inan approximate degree the compression to which the blank is subjected.

" Referrin now to the drawing, the nu meral 10,- .ig. 3, indicates a portion of a curved blankwhich is ada'ptedto, be drawn into a curved, flanged or channeled side bar foran automobile frame. This blank may be produced by cutting or punching from a rectangular plate of suitable width, or from a curved rectangular plate which has been bent 'edgewise, so as to receive within the lltlo in Fig. 3 to that shown in the full lines in the same figure. At the same time, the blank is thickened in the regions of compression, as indicated at 12.

Fig. 2 shows the blank after the side margins thereo'f had been turned so as to pro vide flanges 13, such flanges standing normal to the plane of the web 1%, of the channeled bar. The increased thickness resulting from thecompression is indicated 15, and is readment. The automobile frame thus produced ily discernible upon comparison of the sections at the points indicated by the numerals 13 and'15, the former indicating the normal ga e of the stock.

lthough I have in the drawing of the present case illustrated the side bars as being integrally reinforced at their narrow end portions, it is obvious that such integral reinforcement may be introduced in any sections in the length of the side bar where reinforcement maybe desired, as well as in the cross bars, as disclosed in my application hereinbefore referred to.

Fig. 1 shows a conventional automobile frame constructed in accordance with my invention, the integral reinforced areas bein indicated by the numeral 15, as in Fig. 2.

y invention enables me to produce a channeled side bar, or other frame element, provided with an integral reinforcement of the bar at points which are weakened by perforation, or, where subject to an excessive strain, and I achieve this result without resorting to the practice of separate reinforceis rendered superior from the standpoint of durability and economy in construction, and

eliminates the liability to breakage attachin to frames not reinforced.

" aving thus described my invention,

tions' constituted of integrally reinforced stock of increased gauge.

2. A'curved flanged bar for an automobile frame comprising a'central web and flanges of sheet metal, the latter extending laterally from the plane of the web, such central web Such pressure ef-.

agraeai varying in width in the length of the bar, the narrow portions of th bar being integrally reinforced by an increase in the stock-thereof at points. subject to breaking strains.

3. A curved flanged bar for an automobile frame, comprising a central web and flanges of sheet metal, the latter extending laterally from the plane of the web, such central web varying in width in the length of the bar,-

the narrower portions of the bar being'perforated for the attachment of adjunctive devices and integrally reinforced inthe area of the erforations by an increase in the 'stock 0 the bar to resist the breaking strains.

4. A curved flanged bar' for an automobile frame, comprising a central web and in tegral flanges of sheet metal, the latter extending laterally from the planeof the web, such central web varying in width in the length of the bar, the web and the flanges ail I the wider portions of the bar being constituted of stock of normalgage and in the narrower portions of stock of increased gage, whereby integral reinforcements are provided in the bar at points subject to breaking strains.

5. A curved flanged bar of pressed sheet metal for an automobile frame, composed of a widened centralportion andnarrowed end portions, the latter being perforated for the attachment of adjunctive devices, such narrowed end portions being integrally reinforced in thearea of the perforations by an increase of the stock of which the bar is formed, whereby the baris sustained against breaking strains.

6. An automobile frame embodying in its construction pressed sheet metal. flanged frame elements of normal gage in sections and integral reinforcements of increased gauge in other sections subject to breaking strains.

7 An automobile frame embodying in its construction curved, pressed sheet metal flanged bars of normal gage in sections and integrally thickened in other sections subject to breaking strains.

8; An automobile frame comprising in its construction curved, pressed sheet metal flanged side bars of normal gage in sections and integrally formed reinforcements of increased gage in other sections.

9. An automobile frame composed of pressed sheet metal flanged side bars, and cross bars connecting the side bars, the side bars varying in width in the' direction of their length, the gage of the metal in the wider sections being nor'mal,*and the gage in the narrower sections being increased, to provide an integral reinforcement at points subject to breaking strains.

10. An automobile frame composed of curved, pressed sheet metal lfianged side bars formed as channels, and cross bars name at Milwaukee, this 7th day of Septemconnecting theside bars, the said side bars her, 1921. e varying .in width in the direction of their length, and of thickened gage in seetions v 5 to provide an integral reinforcement et- .Witnesses: points subject to breakin strains. e W. F. W00,

In testimony whereof have signed my EMMA HAUG.

R. STANLEY SMITHQ 

